# Cell phone or cellphone (one word or two?)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [June 19, 2011, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022 "2011-06-19T11:44:11Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 8\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\
**Post date:** [June 19, 2011, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022/1 "2011-06-19T11:44:11Z")

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Which is it? Which do you use?

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**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\
**Post date:** [June 19, 2011, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022/2 "2011-06-19T12:34:00Z")

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Oddly enough, at work, where we actually design and make them…we just call them “phones”.

It’s short for “cellular” phone. Two words.  
-D/a

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**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\
**Post date:** [June 20, 2011, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022/3 "2011-06-20T02:45:34Z")

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It’s said as if it is one word, so it should be spelled the same way. Except when I’m being extremely formal, that’s the guide I always use, except for for a few nitpicky words like “a lot” or “all right.”

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**Author:** ![YaraMateo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/58f4c7/32.png) [@YaraMateo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YaraMateo)\
**Post date:** [June 20, 2011, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022/4 "2011-06-20T02:53:47Z")

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I spell it and say it as one word. However, when I ask someone to call me I just say phone, because I don’t have a landline.

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**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\
**Post date:** [June 20, 2011, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022/5 "2011-06-20T03:01:40Z")

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Mobile. Or mobile phone.

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**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\
**Post date:** [June 20, 2011, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022/6 "2011-06-20T03:05:40Z")

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I’d like it to be one word (and “carseat” for a baby too), but spellcheck does not agree with me.

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**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\
**Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022/8 "2015-01-11T18:19:36Z")

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This is why we can’t have nice things! :mad:

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**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\
**Post date:** [January 11, 2015, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cell-phone-or-cellphone-one-word-or-two/586022/9 "2015-01-11T18:43:20Z")

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Zombie spam reported.